FDA Seeks Proposals for Developing Clinical Practice Guidelines for Opioids Prescribing, Pain Management

Last week, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced an open period for applications to support the development of evidence-based, clinical practice guidelines for the management of postoperative pain in obstetric patients. Applicants are encouraged to consider the appropriate use and dosing of opioids, optimal prescribing strategies, and how to decrease opioid prescribing, explicitly state the role of opioid alternatives, and provide a plan to address demographic disparities in pain management. In their announcement, FDA emphasized that this call for proposals aligns with the agency’s commitment to the safe use of opioid analgesics to reduce opioid misuse and abuse while ensuring patient needs and adequate treatment of pain. Applicants are required to submit their proposals August 3, 2022. The announcement can be found here.

Articles & Resources

Cooperative Agreement to Support an Evidence-Based Clinical Practice Guideline for the Management of Postoperative Pain After Surgeries in Obstetric Patients


Senators Introduce Bill to Support DHS Transnational Illicit Opioids Investigations

Senators Maggie Hassan (NH) and Rob Portman (OH) introduced the Transnational Criminal Investigative Unit Stipend Act which aims to provide support to Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Transnational Criminal Investigative Units (TCIUs). The TCIUs operate as teams of foreign law enforcement officers to conduct Homeland Security Investigations, which investigate and prosecute illicit drug activity, help identify drug dealers, and collect information on transnational criminal organizations. The bill would authorize stipends to the foreign TCIU officers trained in the United States and would require that Immigration and Customs Enforcement submit a report to Congress about the recruitment, training, and vetting process of new TCIU members. In a statement, Senator Portman said “I’m proud to introduce this bipartisan legislation to ensure Transnational Criminal Investigative Unit officers are compensated for their service to combat the illicit narcotics crisis. These foreign law enforcement partners are on the ground to help U.S. law enforcement disrupt and stop the drug cartels from smuggling in illicit narcotics like fentanyl. Considering the most recent CDC data shows that our country faced more than 107,000 drug overdose-related deaths last year, the most ever in a calendar year, with roughly 80 percent of these deaths due to deadly synthetic opioids such as fentanyl, I urge my colleagues to join me in supporting this legislation.”

Articles & Resources

Senator Maggie Hassan – Senators Hassan, Portman Introduce Bipartisan Legislation to Authorize Stipends to Transnational Criminal Investigative Units


What We Read Last Week

Several articles were published last week pertaining to the opioid epidemic, covering a variety of different components of the topic. Links to relevant articles are provided below.

AAFP – AHRQ Offers New and Updated Behavioral Health Resources

Annals of Pharmacotherapy – Criminal Action Against Drug Counterfeiters: Assessment of the FDA Office of Criminal Investigation Database 2016 Through 2021

DEA – New, Dangerous Synthetic Opioid in D.C., Emerging in Tri-State Area

Health Affairs – Pivoting From Carceral To Compassionate Drug Policy Approaches

Indiana University – Opioid overdose detection patch under development, funded by National Institute on Drug Abuse

Mayo Clinic – Disparities in opioid treatment access remain for women, Black and Hispanic people

NPR – Tribal leaders sound the alarm after fentanyl overdoses spike at Blackfeet Nation

Pain Management Nursing – Patient Pain Experiences and the Emergency Department Encounter: A Qualitative Analysis

Pharmacy Times – Best Practices for Implementing an Opioid Stewardship Program During the Opioid Crisis

STAT – The American Medical Association is fighting an otherwise popular bill to require training doctors about opioid use disorder

The Harvard Gazette – New tool models evolution of opioid crisis

The Wall Street Journal – Parents Try to Keep Kids Safe From Fentanyl With Warnings, Pleas and Naloxone Training

The Washington Post – Equal mental health insurance coverage elusive despite legal guarantee

This Week’s Calendar

In the week ahead, there are no relevant events or hearings noticed at this time. In the event that there are any changes to the schedule for this week, we will make additional information available.


Questions about the above content can be directed to [email protected].